It Only Gets Weirder
by TheLadyIchigo
Summary: AU series of ficletts involving my OC Chandi Belqua and her "adventures" with the SAW gang.
1. Chapter 1

**AN- This was originally one long fic in progress, but I got lazy and never wrote the in-between parts. What's left is these excerpts. These stories feature two main Ocs (and a few side ones). There's Michelle, who was my BF's saw OC. Michelle was a stripper before her "rehabilitation" and she later became a 3****rd**** apprentice (after Amanda & Hoffman). My OC is Chandi, whose quite messed up even after her "testing".**

********************************************"Chandi" isn't the ****real**** Chandi**************************************************

The world seemed to move in slow motion and he was horror-struck; frozen in place as he watched Chandi fall, gripping her left side in obvious pain. Amanda was equally as horror-struck, Michelle actually screamed. Hoffman seemed to be the only one unaffected as he was over behind the cretin before the thought even occurred to him. There was a thud as the thud fell to the floor unconscious or worse from the blow landed on the back of his head by Hoffman's gun grip. The "thunk" seemed to unfreeze Amanda who rushed over to where Chandi was lying on the floor and tried to rouse her.

He knew better than to try - with an attack like that, Chandi was probably already….

But much to his amazement Chandi roused after Amanda shook her. Michelle unfroze and dashed away, headed in the direction of the car and he was sure that she was running for the first aid kit. Both he and Hoffman converged on the two girls. Hoffman was removing his jacket, obviously to use to staunch whatever area was bleeding until Michelle returned.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Chandi insisted, both arms covering the left side of her torso.

"Let me see!" Amanda demanded, grabbing at Chandi's arms.

Chandi pulled away, stumbling to her feet. "I said I'm fine - I can take care of it alone just fine."

Amanda fumed "With an injury like that, you're lucky you're not dead already! Let me see; it needs attention!"

Amanda all but changed after her, grabbing Chandi arms and pulling them aside; Chandi resisted her the best she could in her current condition. He was confused as to why Chandi was resisting help from Amanda, who she was arguably the closest with.

"No! You can't!" Chandi was complaining. "Stop! Stop! It doesn't hurt! Stop!"

Amanda frowned and continued her attempts "How can it not hurt? Any person with that injury would be hurting! Don't lie!"

"I'm not lying." Chandi's response was even-leveled and soft "It doesn't hurt."

Michelle seemed to think this was the opportune time to interject, having just returned with the kit, which Amanda grabbed. "You heard her: 'Any person with that injury would be hurting'. What do you think, that you're special, you're unique, you're…"

"Not a person." Chandi interjected softly.

Amanda stopped and Michelle closed her mouth.

"What do you mean, 'not a person', Chandi?" Amanda asked softly.

"Just what it means; I'm not a person. I'm a-"

"Doll…." Michelle interjected. "Just like the small one."

He almost laughed; Chandi was going a bit too far with this joke. It couldn't be true, it couldn't! Chandi, a doll? She had emotions, thoughts, and feelings. How could she be a doll? Sure, her eyes were looking a little off this morning, but it didn't mean she was a doll….did it?

Chandi snorted "Well, I was going to go with personified electronic responsive service opinionated natural computer being; 'doll' can't accurately describe what I am."

"Personified electronic responsive service opinionated natural computer….what? Do you expect me to say that?" Michelle all but yelled. "And what does that mean anyway?"

"PERSON Computer Being or Person-Com for short. I guess the easiest way to explain it is the simply way: I'm a robot." Chandi drawled, lowering her arms.

He was pretty sure he gagged right then and there. Where there should have been torn flesh on Chandi's torso there was none. There was a gaping hole which extended from Chandi's left breast down on her left side to just above her waist, the dress having been ripped away. There was no blood, no guts, just brass gears, cogs, and screws within all still moving and turning. There was a slight splattering of a dark fluid, some kind of oil or lubricant, but no blood. A real robot….

Amanda took a huge step back, covering her mouth with her hand, a look of complete and utter shock written all across her face. Hoffman looked startled, Michelle was speechless. He felt, well he didn't know how he felt. On one hand, he was very interested about the whole "robot" thing, on the other, he was angry at himself for not realizing it sooner. But most of all, he didn't know what to feel…he was in love with a robot... as if his love life wasn't already pathetic!

"Who built you?" Hoffman's simple question broke the uncomfortable silence. In hindsight, he felt HE should have asked it.

"Me. Well, I guess the 'real me' is the proper answer: the 'real Chandi' built me."

Amanda seemed to recover somewhat. "There's an actual Chandi person?" He felt a small twinge of hope at this.

"Yes. I am built in her image and behave as she would. She made me that way."

"Why?"

"To answer that is to tell the whole story - and it is not my place to tell that. That right belongs to her and her alone." Chandi paused, taking in the faces of the four. "Shall I take you to see her?"


	2. Chapter 2

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Her Name is Heather~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

He watched silently as Circe peaked into the bag that Chandi had just handed her. The melancholy look on her face vanished instantly and was replaced by a huge grin. Circe looked up briefly to flash Chandi that huge smile before gently setting the bag down on the floor and reaching inside with two hands. He briefly wondered just what had made Circe so happy, but the question faded as Circe withdrew the...thing.

He supposed "doll" was the proper term, although it was unlike Billy. It was porcelain and at least three feet tall. She, for the doll was most defiantly a female, had ivory skin, grey eyes, red pained nails (and toes) and bright red lips. Her hair was black and hung around her fine face is a spiky shortcut and she had a tattoo on her right cheek that looked like a lightning bolt. She wore red lace-up sandals (with sheer black socks underneath), a black skirt (with red trimming), a red belt, a red teardrop hanging jewel belt over that, and red pendant necklace. She also had a magenta leather jacket. That was all fine with him. What bothered him was the top: a black tank-top with cut-outs of rib bones, through which red showed through, and...A bloodstain where the heart should be. Circe seemed interested by this too and gave Chandi a look. Chandi motioned in the direction of the bag and Circe once again stuck her hands in...And pulled out a tiny red (anatomically correct) heart.

Now he really was unsure about this. He was about to reach out and take the creepy doll from Circe when she suddenly hugged it close to her.

"I love it: it's perfect!" Circe beamed; he stilled his hand. Perhaps she was a little too much like him...

Circe looked up at Chandi "What's her name?"

He almost scoffed, but didn't. He kept forgetting how young Circe really was. He was sure that Chandi hadn't anticipated this.

But Chandi's reply came quickly and barely loud enough to hear "Heather."

Circe nodded. "Thank you! I'll take good care of her!" Then her blue eyes turned down to Heather "Let's play!" she told the doll before taking off in the direction of her room.

He watched until she vanished from sight then turned to the other blonde. "Heather?"

She looked at him, an indescribable emotion swirling in her eyes. "Don't even ask." And she turned and walked away in the direction of the mechanism - going back up to her tower to shut herself away inside one of her rooms for some inordinate amount of time for a reason she felt she couldn't share with him.

As he watched her go he suddenly felt horrid. Despite all the teachings he done, all the "poor souls" he managed to save from their own sins, and all the other people whose lives were better due to his teachings, he couldn't do anything for Chandi who was (arguably) the person he held the most emotion towards. He had never felt so insignificant and worthless before.

Normally he could look at a person and see the "therapy" that that person needed. He didn't need to spend hours thinking of it, normally the ideas for his traps just came to him. But there was no trap that could "save" Chandi: she's only become more damaged as the first trap she'd been in had proved. And that was what had him at a loss: how could he save someone without a trap? He was ashamed to admit he had no answer.


	3. Chapter 3

********************************************A Great Minature Feat*************************************************

"No."

The single word was spoken with such force, there was no room left for arguments. Michelle silently watched the stare-down between John and CHandi with a half-interested gaze. It was John whom had spoken; Chandi looked offended by the comment.

"But-" the blonde began, only to be silened by John's gaze.

"Six days and nothing but traps - do something else for the day." He told her, more like demanded of her. When Chandi didn't move, he stood and grapsed the wrench in her hand. "It wasn't a sugestion."

Chandi apeared affronted for a moment longer, then relenquished her hold on the wrench. Without a word she turned and walked away. Michelle watched her back until she was out of view, then shrugged and took the place Chandi had occupied moments ago to assist John.

An hour later she spied Chandi in the far corner, hunched over something as she moved a larger piece of the equipment with John. He saw her too and the moment the piece was set down, he walked over towards her, obviously intent on making sure she wasn't doing work. Michelle followed. Chandi had out two bokes, all filled wo the brim with paint, brushes, plaster, cardboard, ribbon, and a variety of other crafting supplies. She was currently cutting some type of board with an exacto-knife. John seemed pleased that Chandi was doing something else and touched her shoulder briefly before leading Michelle away. Michelle stole a glace over her shoulder; just what was Chandi making?

The day crawled. With no help from Hoffman or Chandi and Amanda in a game, the work was slow. After six hours with little rest, Michelle was about to beg John to allow Chandi to help, but the look in his eyes told her he knew what she was thinking and the answer was no. Michelle wiped her brow off on the towel and continued work on her end. Daylight faded. Chandi made a brief apearance in the nearby kitchen when she heated up some soup for herself in a bowl before vanishing back to her corner. It was another two hours before John allowed Michelle to make a quick meal for the two of them; she was happy to be able to sit and eat at last. An hour later, they were back at it - John wanted the trap ready for the morning before the intended victim went on an oversea trip for who knew how long.

Michelle left briefly to use the bathroom two hours after dinner; she aslo turned off all of the unecessary lights in the workshop: no need to attract any unwanted attention. She peaked into the other room and wasn't suprised to see that Chandi was still hard at work, a single light on to help her. John cleared his throat and Michelle hurried back to his side - they were nearly finished.

Finally, thirteen and a half hours after they began building, it was done. Michelle helped John use the cart to load the device into the back of the van. Hoffman would be arriving in about two hours to take the mechanism to the designated location - and then place the victim inside. Michelle took a seat, utterly exhausted. She wanted to go straight up to bed, but she saw the single light was still on: Chandi was still awake. Her curiosity got the better of her and Michelle walked over towards Chandi's corner desk just as the blonde finally sat up straight. Chandi heard Michelle's approch and turned to flash her a smile.

"All finished." Chandi told Michelle, not looking tired despite the fact she too had been up for over thirteen hours.

Michelle wandered next to Chandi and took a look at Chandi's mastepiece. It was a small scale model of the factory's outside, with everything on it from the signs, to the grafitti, and the broken windows too. Everything was in perfect scale. Michelle was slightly impressed. Chandi must have noticed the half-impressed look on her face, for the next second the blonde was talking again.

"Pick up the roof by the chimmney and take a better look." Chandi instructed.

Michelle gingerly did just so and gasped in shock. Chandi had made the INSIDE of the factory too; all of the floors, rooms, and cealings. Mchelle gingerly lifted the top floor up and gasped again. The workshop was done with an insane attention to detail. Chandi had put in everything from the tools on the walls to the traps left on the side to the exact arrangements of their bedrooms. In numb shock, Michelle opened the tiny closet Chandi had put in her own bedroom and gaped in wonder at the fact that it was filled with all of her clothes in the correct order. The fridge in the kitchen had the food that was in the real fridge, all in the same place. The drawers in every room were filled with the proper instruments or tools, all laying there just as they were in real life. The detail was horrifying and Michelle coudln't believe that Chandi had made such a complicated little model in only thriteen hours.

Numbly, Michelle placed the model back together and stared at Chandi. "How did you...?" her question trailed off as Michelle found she didn't quite know waht to ask.

Chandi just smirked at her.

Michelle tried to compose herself and was about to ask Chandi a real question when she felt a presence besides her. Looking over, she wasn't suprised to see John. She supposed all her gasping and staring must have drawn their master over to see. Michelle stepped aside to let John through. She watched from the side as he survayed the small model from all sides, turning it. Michelle was also able to see Chandi's face, which was monontonous now. Judging by the look on John's face, he wasn't as impressed as Michelle had been. He did seem to realize that the top was removable without Chandi's assiatance, for her removed it on his own to look within.

He suveyed the cealing and the top floor before lifting it out too to observe the workshop floor underneath. John's expression was now unreadable to Michelle. If she had to guess, she would have said his expression was part amazed, part dissapointed, and part concerned; but that was just her guessing - she couldn't be sure of what John was thinking. Finally after several more minutes, John placed the model back togetehr and walked away witout a comment or a look in Chandi's direction. Michelle watched as he vanished around the corner towards his won room - she heard his footsteps on the metal stairs neaby moments later followed by the soft slam of a door. Chandi waited until the door slammed before her expression changed. The monotonous facade crmbled into a deep scowl.

"Dick" she murmered with distain, just loud enough for Michelle to hear, as she put away the remainder of the supplies.


	4. Chapter 4

*****************************************The Badly Damaged Reki*****************************************************

It is the 5th time he has watched her beg Chandi for the 3rd doll.

One had a ripped out heart and the second had been painted with bones. How much worse could the 3rd be?

Chandi pulled a box down from a high shelf, cradling it gently to her chest as if it were a newborn. The box was set down upon the table gingerly. Chandi opened the top and reached inside with two hands to withdraw the doll.

He immediately took a step back. The doll was, by far, the most gruesome of Chandi's dolls. On places all over the doll's body pieces of skin were missing and the underlying muscle had been revealed. Several other places had patches of blue-tinted skin, skill bleeding, and a portion of her head showed skull. Long cuts on the doll's face, torso, and legs bleed red streams downwards. Minus the revolting appearance of her skin and the cuts, the girl doll had huge bluish violet eyes, large red lips, and long silky black hair which was in a long ponytail. The doll wore fingerless black gloves, black sandals, black toenail polish, black sheer stockings, a v-neck brown top with lace, a tiny black skirt, and an oversized ruffled brown and cream sleeveless jacket. Chandi seemed to not notice the doll's injuries and held the doll tightly to her chest, her eyes downcast as if she expected Circe to be revolted.

But Circe surprised them both once again. She took two steps forward until she was right in front of Chandi. "Her eyes are so pretty..."

Chandi's head snapped up, a look of pure disbelief on her face. Circe had her arms outstretched now, reaching up towards Chandi, asking for the doll. A slight smile crossed Chandi's lips before she wordlessly handed the third doll to Circe, who held it and hugged it as if it were the most beautiful doll ever.

Circe flashed Chandi a huge smile and a "Thanks!" before shooting that quizzical look that was so particular to Circe that he knew Chandi knew what was coming next.

"Reki" Chandi told her and Circe nodded and ran off chirping about something.

He walked closer to her "Reki? Is that Chinese?"

"Japanese" Chandi responded as she put the empty box back up on the shelf.

"I'm not familiar with it." He simply stated. She remained silent, so he continued. "It's rather interesting sounding…what does it mean?"

"Reki…it has a few meanings but the way it's written here" she gestured to the small kanji on the side of the box "it means 'to be trodden on'"


	5. Chapter 5

*********************************************The Injured Dolls*************************************************

He watched Circe run off with the 4th doll, Weeko, before he turned back to Chandi.

"Why do they all look like that?" He asked her.

Chandi wouldn't turn to face him. "Look like what?"

"Injured, hurt. The first one with the heart out, the second with painted bones, the third with skin removed and cuts, and this last one with bones showing. Why are all of these dolls injured?"

Chandi didn't respond. He didn't understand. It was a simple question. After a few minutes of silence, he took a tentative step towards her, hand outreached. "Chandi?"

Chandi's answer came as a soft whisper. "Because that's the fate that they met." And then she was gone from the room quicker than a flash.

He thought for a moment, replaying her sentence over in his mind before he finally realized what she meant. He hoped he was wrong. He hoped that these dolls weren't representations of real people Chandi had cared about that had met such grisly ends. He truly hoped he was wrong...if he wasn't, Chandi just might be too damaged to fix...


	6. Chapter 6

********************************************Chandi ATTACKS**************************************************

He left Jill waiting there in the hall as he went back upstairs to the workstation for the document. It wasn't in the place he thought it was when he looked and he frowned; he was certain he had left it there. He tried to remember what he had done with the document, but a commotion from downstairs grabbed his attention and he walked over to the doorway to see what was going on.

Jill was sitting on the floor on the far end of the hallway, her hair out of place and her dress torn. There was a look of pure and utter fear on her face and she seemed frozen in place. On the other hand, Chandi was livid, almost feral. Her eyes were alight with some horrendous murderous emotion as she fought to get at Jill. It was taking Amanda, Michelle, and Hoffman to hold her back. And even so, they were just barely able to. He recalled a conversation that had occure djust after Chandi had joined their little family. Michelle, not liking Chandi much at the time, had compared her to a cow. Chandi, obviously livid, had replied that she wasn't a cow: she was a girl born on the night of a full blue moon in the year of a dog, which made her a wolf. Chandi had insisted that's what animal she would be. Looking at Chandi's face and posture now, he agreed. Chandi looked like a snarling, feral wolf.

Chandi was screaming something while swatting at the three holding her as she fought to break free. He heard Michelle tell one of the other two to dose her with the concoction that was normally used on trap victims and heard Amanda yell back from Chandi's other side that Chandi had already been given three.

At that moment, Chandi's left arm swung back with significant force and Amanda was knocked off and tumbled to the ground. With a hand free, it took Chandi no time at all to toss Michelle aside and then tackle Hoffman out of the way. Even though Hoffman was at least doubl Chandi's weight, she was abl;e to overpower the fit detective with a single move; Hoffman looked shocked. From his view up top, he could see that Hoffman had managed to stick Chandi with another dose, but it apparently did no good as Chandi all but charged at the frozen Jill. Hoffman was back on his feet already and headed towards Chandi and Jill, although Chadi had a bit of a lead on him.

Chandi was on top, clawing and cursing at the other woman, her nails digging into Jill's skin and leaving ugly claw marks by the time Hoffman got to her. Michelle quickly joined Hoffman in trying to pull Chandi off Jill and Hoffman stuck Chandi again with another shot. This action seemed to enrage Chandi all the more as she turned and smashed Michelle in the gut with a powerful blow from her arm; the look on Chandi's face was beyond terrible, as if she were possessed by some horrific demon or that her inner wolf had truly fully come out to play. The impact sent Michelle flying back into the wall, from where she crumpled onto the floor. Hoffman put his arms under Chandi's and attempted to pull her off, but Chandi reared her head back and butted it into Hoffman's chin, causing him to release his grip and stumble backwards. The action seemed to cause Chandi no harm as she shrugged it off in seconds, then wasted no time in scrambling forwards towards the still fearful Jill who'd been trying to crawl away.

One of Chandi's hands closed around her ankle and Chandi pulled harshly, causing Jill's hands to go out from under her and her chin to impact the floor with a crack. Chandi's hand wrenched the ankle and there was a loud snap and a loud scream from Jill that left no doubt in his mind that Chandi had just broken or fractured the bone there. Chandi sneered and reached for the other ankle. But Amanda was then on her hitting her with three more shots of the knock-out drug. Chandi attempted to throw Amanda aside, but it seemed that the drug was working at last and Chandi's blows held no power. Amanda was able to keep her hold on Chandi's wrists. Chandi struggled in her grip, but Amanda held on. After a few more moments, she collapsed forwards, out cold, and Amanda let out a shaky breath.

Hoffman was up and tending to Michelle, who was bleeding slightly from the wound on her head. Amanda rolled Chandi over and checked that she was still alive, given the amount of drugs that had been given to her. All three of the conscious apprentices seemed to be ignoring Jill, who was covering in the far corner, obviously in some pain and scared out of her mind. He just stood there, still at the top of the stairs, frozen in shock. What in the world had just happened?


	7. Chapter 7

*************************************************The After-effects of Chandi's Rage*********************************************

Michelle had been laid down on bed and told to rest; she had felt dizzy when standing and Amanda had suspected a possibly concussion. Hoffman had helped him move Jill into a spare bed and told her to rest; she would need to be driven to an ER later. Hoffman had then left, headed back to his job as a Detective. Amanda was bandaging her cuts, distracted. He walked over to stand next to her and se looked over at him. She seemed to know what he was thinking, though.

"No, I don't know why Chandi would do that. She's never had that kind of reaction before to anyone else. I guess it's just Jill... I don't think she's ever met her here before and I'm sure she has no idea just who she is. Chandi was beyond angry at her... it took 8 doses to subdue her, eight! And they didn't even really work! She started waking up when I was bringing her back to her room, so I had to lock her in the basement storage room so she wouldn't go crazy again. She's probably fully awake now...if you want to go ask her why." Amanda deadpanned, her focus on her cuts.

But she really wasn't tending to them too well at all and he knew that the only reason her focus was there was so she didn't have to meet his eyes. It was no secret that Amanda and Chandi got along super well; he was sure Amanda was worried he would 'remove' Chandi from their group... And as he walked off, he sighed to himself, after this incident, he really didn't see another choice...


	8. Chapter 8

**************************************Chandi's Sister and Jill****************************************************

Chandi was yelling about killing her, making her pay, and getting out of her 'cell' at high octaves, her look pure rage. She didn't seem to be listening to anything he was saying or asking her. Finally, he got fed up with waiting and grabbed her shoulders. Making her body face him, he shook her harshly which momentarily silenced her.

"WHY? TELL ME WHY!" he demanded of her, yelling.

Chandi's babbling yelling stopped immediately and she faced him, her eyes overflowing with hatred.

"SHE KILLED MY SISTER!"

Silence momentarilly filled the room and he released her shoulders in numb shock. Chandi still had the look in her eyes; she had yet to look away from him. Her eyes were boring into his and he could see the malice swirling in them. The only sound in the room for several minutes was the sound of Chandi's ragged breathing. Finally Chandi spoke again.

"She killed my sister...and it was no accident." Her voice was calmer now but none of the hatred or venom had left her tone. "And she deserves to pay for it like everyone else who's commited such an act."

Some of his shock wore off and he just stared at Chandi. He took a deep breath and tried to relax a little. The only way to solve the issue was to listen to Chandi's story and then go from there. "Tell me."

Chandi got up from her knees and walked away. She stopped over by the room's only window and sat down on the nearby box, looking outside where the rain was still coming down in troves. "I say 'sister', but she wasn't my real blood sister. I don't have any family left, no blood family anyway. She was like me, we were instant friends when we met for the first time. Over time, our bond grew until I no longer though of her as just my friend. We cared for each other, told each other secrets and worries, cried on each other, depended on each other... It became so much more than a friendship. We became each other's family, like true sisters, twin sisters. She was my sister, just not my blood sister. And I cared for her more than anything or anyone else. It was her, me, and our three closest friends, who were almost like sisters to us as well. But of the five, she and I were the closest."

He nodded slightly; the sentiment was well understood. He too rose to his feet, but remained standing in the same spot. "Continue."

"Something happened; what it was has no bearing on what happened next, just know that something happened. I had a twisted ankle, she was hurt much worse. She had been concussed and stabbed and she was bleeding badly. My phone was destroyed and we were in a secluded area. I picked her up and tried to carry her to get her help; it wasn't easy since we weighed about the same and my ankle was bad. I got to a main street, but it was late at night, well into the early morning hours, maybe 2 or 3. There wasn't anyone around and the area we were in was mostly warehouses and stores that didn't have anyone working at night. The streets were deserted and no one answered when I screamed for help. But then I noticed there was someone out, walking out way. I propped my sister up against the wall and ran up to the person as best I could, begging for help. Begging her to help or for her to call someone to help us."

"And this was Jill?" he asked.

"Jill? Never knew her name, only what she looked like. So if this Jill is that woman I attacked, then yes, it was her." Chandi answered, looking at him.

He nodded in affirmation and Chandi returned her view out the window.

"So there I was begging this lady for help: my hands drenched in my sister's blood, my ankle swollen, and both of us covered in dirt. And she looks at me and looks at my sister laying helpless nearby and then she scoffs and her face morphs into this sneer and she says "I've got better things to do that deal with trash like you" in a voice so cold and callous that it could freeze over hell. And she rips her dress out of my grasp and walks away without another word. I yell after her, begging, but she doesn't turn around and she doesn't come back." Chandi stated, her voice wobbling a bit.

"It was another ten minutes before someone else came around and called for help another five after that before that help arrived and by then my sister had already died, bleed to death while I held her in my arms." Chandi's voice started to become angry again and she clenched her hands tightly. "The doctor who examined her later said that if she had gotten help earlier, like ten or fifteen minutes before she did then the would have lived. If that heartless woman had stopped or even called for help, my sister wouldn't have had to die!"

Chandi stood up suddenly, her face expressing her rage. "When I was released from the hospital, I went back to that area to try and find out who that woman was. At a salon nearby, I found out what she had done after she had left us: she got a manicure. Getting her nails done was worth more to her than my sister's life! The employee didn't remember her name, so all I had was a description. I've spent all the days since then, all the months and years trying to find that heartless bitch so I could make her pay for what she did to my sister! Just dying isn't a good enough punishment: I want her to linger like my sister did and have to die slowly knowing that there's no one to save her! I want her to suffer! And I'm not about to let anyone stop me from doing it - not Michelle, not Hoffman, not Amanda, and certainly not you!"

By the end, Chandi was all but screaming and blood was dripping onto the floor from her palms, the result of her hands being clenched too tightly. Chandi seemed to realize this and raised one hand upwards to examine it, uncurling her fingers. At the sight of her bloodied hands, the rage left her face and she started to cry, collapsing back down onto her knees to sob.

He just stood and watched her, shocked once again. He was finally seeing some of the true Chandi, not just a façade. When he has allowed Chandi into their group, he had known she had some secrets as they all had; he had never expected one like this though. He left his thoughts and tried to focus back on reality, seeing Chandi was still sobbing harshly on the floor. He started towards her slowly.

He had always viewed himself as the most emotionally damaged of the group. Sure, Hoffman had lost his sister, but then again Hoffman had known that Seth Baxter was no good and that he would eventually hurt her…she just never listened. In that way, Hoffman had been more prepared; it hadn't hurt as much as the shock he had suffered. But seeing Chandi sob on the floor, he realized that she was far more damaged than himself; if they were to be compared, he was sure his damage wouldn't even register next to hers.

He hadn't been able to see it, just how hurt she was inside. All these years, she'd been burying it inside to try and forget the pain. All these years, she'd been waiting for someone to realize it and come save her.

But no one ever came.

And she was forced to relive that day over and over again, feeling alone. She was forced to face the loss every year, alone. There was no friend there to hold her hand, no family to comfort her, no boyfriend to lean against: Chandi was completely alone and slowly dying from the inside out, the feelings of loss, guilt, and helplessness eating her alive.

He felt insignificant for not realizing it sooner.

He stopped beside her and knelt down next to her, snaking an arm around her. Chandi didn't stop sobbing, but she all but threw herself into his arms. And he knelt there with her, holding Chandi and rubbing her back softly as he left her cry. And for the first time in a long time he felt genuine remorse. Chandi just sobbed on in his arms, seemingly oblivious as to who it was that was holding her. After a few minutes of holding her, he realized she wasn't just sobbing, but muttering something under her breath between her sobs. He strained his ears to hear what she was saying, even leaning in closer to hear her.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Reki. I'm sorry."

At first, the muttered sentence ment nothing to him, but then Circe's face suddenly swam into his mind and he recalled Chandi's gifts to Circe. Four dolls. And Chandi herself had told him 'Because that's the fate that they met' when he had asked about their injuries. And Chandi had named them all: Heather, Meike, Reki, and Weeko.

Reki.

Reki, Chandi's 'sister' who had died from stab wounds and had been struck across the head and a doll named Reki with numerous cutes and some skull showing.

It couldn't be...

But he was sure it was. Chandi, her 'sister' Reki, and three friends. Chandi, severely damaged emotionally, carting around four dolls with names and deadly injuries. Chandi, poor Chandi, carting around the burdern of her lost 'family' in the form of little porcelin dolls.

Maybe they're weren't so different after all.


	9. Chapter 9

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Chandi in the Park With Gid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

Michelle stormed away from Hoffman, fire burning in her eyes. How DARE Chandi just hang up on her? Luckily, she had heard enough background noise to know where in the park Chandi was and she was going to find hat blonde twat and give her a piece of her mind! She marched across the park quickly, still fuming. She made it to the approximate area in less than ten minutes, a record for her! She looked over the area and quickly spotted Chandi near a grove of trees. She marched over, ready to scream at the blonde but stopped dead in her tracks three feet away. Chandi wasn't alone.

Beside her was a sitting figure wearing a hoodie which obscured his face from view. She could see black pants and boots, but nothing else. Said boy, for the boy wasn't older than fifteen or so, judging by his physique, was coughing violently. Chandi was rubbing his back and holding out a bottled water, which he took.

"He okay?" she found herself asking.

Chandi didn't seem too surprised to see Michelle. She nodded and turned back to the boy. "He is now."

"Who is he?" Michelle asked.

Chandi didn't answer immediately. Instead she helped the boy to his feet, steadying him as if she were afraid he'd fall over. As the boy stood up fully, his hoodie fell back and Michelle got a good look at his face. Blonde hair, light blonde, in a ponytail with obviously dyed blue edges. His skin was fair and his ears pierced. His eyes were a striking dark blue and somehow familiar to Michelle, although she didn't know how. Chandi looked at him in concern.

"You going to make it back OK, Gid?" The boy nodded.

"Gid?" Michelle muttered softly. "Short for ...". And she gasped. Know she knew where she'd seen his eyes before, why his face looked familiar. But... but it couldn't be... The boy was leaving and Chandi turned to face Michelle, her expression serious.

"Is he...?" Michelle breathed out, still in shock.

Chandi eyed her warily. "Yes, he is." she started and then, seeing the shocked look on Michelle's face continued "And it's one hell of a long and complicated story."

Michelle nodded slowly; obviously it was. It had to be in order for Gideon to still be alive... She stared at the spot where he had left from. Suddenly she was back against a tree, Chandi's left hand was gripping the neck of her shirt and holding it tight while her other hand braced the tree trunk besides Michelle. Chandi's body was close to her, her face inches away. Chandi's eyes were fierce and uncompromising. She glared at Michelle.

"Tell NO ONE." Chandi hissed to her. "It's not the right time for this to get brought up."

Michelle nodded in compliance; Chandi looked absolutely terrifying right now and Michelle had no doubt that Chandi would maim her horribly if she told anyone.

Chandi nodded once, then added a final statement. "Whatever you do, DO NOT tell John."


	10. Chapter 10

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Mourning & Startling Revealtions~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

It was raining when he awoke the next morning. Yawning softly, he noticed Chandi was no longer beside him. A quick feel of the matress reveled it to be cold; Chandi had obviously left some time ago. Rubbing the remnants of sleep from his eyes, he got up and threw on the clothes from yesterday before heading out into the work area.

Michelle and Amanda were sill fast alseep in their respective rooms; Hoffman had left already for work. A check of the major rooms and Chandi's own bedroom came up empty. Frowning slightly, he made his way into the kitchen and checked the fridge. He found it full with food, elliminating the possibility that Chandi had run out for breakfast groceries. He was about to start searching for a note when the calendar's date caught his eye: April 18th. He sighed in understanding: it was one of Chandi's three useless days.

Three days out of the year, Chandi is useless. On one of those days (in October), she flies into an utter rage and destroys anything around her or argues with anyone near her over the smallest things. On the other two days, she vanishes for the morning with a distant look on her face and then returns in the afternoon, only to shut herself in her room and sob uncontrollably for the remainder of the day. One of those days is in January and the other is April 18th. Hoffman once mentioned in passing he attempted to follow Chandi on one of those two days but she lost him. A month ago, he would have no idea where Chandi could have gone. Now, he was sure he knew just where she was. Groaning in slight frustration, he put on his shoes, grabed a coat and an umbrella, and then headed out.

It was forty minutes to Lakeview - five minutes waiting, twenty of those on a city bus, and then another fifteen of walking - but at last he reached the main gate and walked inside. Lakeview was deserted - not many people came out to a cemetary on a rainy morning, but he was sure Chandi would be here. It was, afterall, the anniversary of her 'sister' and three friends' deaths. He started on one end and walked the path, looking up and down the rows of stone for Chandi. He found her a little before the halfway mark.

Dressed in the brown floral-print dress, goggles, and black boots, Chandi was sitting on the wet grass staring blankly at the large stone before her. In one hand a bouquet of tiger lillies, pink roses, white dasies, and bluebells was cluthed tightly. In the other, a locket. Chandi hadn't bothered to bring a jacket or an umbrella nor did she seem to care that it was raining. She just sat there, staring at the rock, soaking wet from head to toe. He slowly walked up to join her, sparing a momentary glance at the stone which only bore four names "Weeko, Reki, Meike, Heather" and a date "April 18th, XXXX". Chandi didn't seem to notice his presence even after a few minutes, so finally he sat besides her (upon the long back of his coat, of course, to prevent a wet bottom). He held the umbrella so it covered Chandi too.

Chand noticed the rain stopping on her head and looked up. Then her eyes moved to him. The mixture of rain and Chandi's tears had smeared the make-up Chandi had been too tired to wash off the night before down her face, making her look like a wet raccoon. He held back a snort of laughter and used his free hand to retrieve the hankerchef from his pocket and gently wipe the runny mess of her face. Chandi smiled slightly, then turned her eyes back down to the bouquet in her hand.

"Weeko loved daisies, Meike loved roses, Heather's favorites were bluebells and sissy liked tiger lillies..." she muttered to no one in particular as she finally laid the bouquet before the stone slab.

As she withdrew her hand, the tears started again.

"It's not fair."

He sighed softly. Transferring the umbrella to his other hand, he put his now-free arm around Chandi's shoudlers. "It isn't fair sometimes, not fair at all."

Chandi turned to him, lip quavering, and then once again threw herself into his arms sobbing. And once more, he held her and let her. Chandi had every right to cry over this, of that he was 100% certain. He held her with his free arm, using the other to keep the umbrella over them and allow them to be somewhat dry as the rain poured down around them with no hint of stopping anytime soon. It was almost like the sky was crying along with Chandi, having been moved by her plight.

He didn't know how long they sat there before Chandi finnaly stopped crying and allowed him to help her to her feet and lead her away. The didn't walk too far before Chandi wandered off to the left and sat down on the side of a long stone, rubbing her temples. Taking a closer look at her, Chandi looked slightly green.

"Are you alright?" he asked her softly, concerned that she had gotten herself sick.

Chandi looked at him breifly, then turned her gaze down to her feet. "Please don't be mad at me." she murmered.

Her comment only served to make him more concered. Why did she say that? His first thought was that she had awoken so depressed that she had taken an overdose of pills before comming her or that she had drank posion - Hoffman has mentioned that she tended to very depressed on this date. Hurridly, he shook his head. "No, I won't be angry. What's wrong, Chandi?"

Chandi's eyes rose to peek at him from behind her wet hair. "You promise?" she whispered.

He nodded more furously. "Yes. Promise." He tilted her head up to face him with his free hand, desperate to know what was ailing her. If it was an overdose or poison, he'd have to get her to a hospital fast... "Now, what's wrong?"

Chandi opened her mouth to say something, but quickly turned to the sideand collapsed to her knees, puking. He dropped the umbrella and knelt beside her, holding her shoulders steady. Chandi threw up a little more, then stopped, breathing heavily. He noticed her vomit was all clear fluid: no sign of food or any type of medication clouding it. Slowly Chandi sat back on her legs, kneeling in the wet grass. Her breathing had calmed back down and she was no longer as green as she was moment ago. Her arms wrapped around her waist and she looked away from him, unable to meet his eyes.

"Chandi...?"

She looked at him briefly, eyes overflowing with some emotion he could't quite understand, before turning back down to her knees. She drew in a shaky breath and spoke the two words he was least expecting to hear.

"...I'm pregnant"


End file.
